The final stage of the 2025 men’s Tour de France took a controversial turn. To mark the 50th anniversary of the Tour’s finish on the Champs-Élysées, organizers added three ascents of the steep, narrow, and cobbled climb through Montmartre, famously featured in last summer’s Olympic road race. Gone was the traditional celebratory parade into Paris, followed by 50 kilometers of (relatively) stress-free laps on wide boulevards and one of the most anticipated sprint finishes of the season. In its place: a demanding, technical route that the exhausted peloton would have to navigate at the end of a grueling three weeks of racing.
Rain in Paris led the ASO to neutralize the general classification on the fourth crossing of the finish line—critically, just before the first climb through Montmartre. From there, the race splintered. Some riders simply pedaled to the finish, while a select group fought for one final stage win on cycling’s most iconic boulevard.
Wout van Aert delivered a tactical masterclass, taking the 10th Tour stage win of his career—and his second on the Champs-Élysées—after attacking out of an elite group that included Tadej Pogačar.
Join Whit Yost and Senior Reviews Editor Bobby Lea as they break down today’s dramatic finale.
Stage 21 – Top 5
- Wout van Aert (Team Visma | Lease a Bike_
- Davide Ballerini (XDS Astana)
- Matej Mohorič (Bahrain Victorious)
- Tadej Pogačar (UAE Emirates | XRG)
- Matteo Jorgenson (Team Visma | Lease a Bike)
General Classification – Top 5
- Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG)
- Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike)
- Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe)
- Oscar Onley (Picnic PostNL)
- Félix Gall (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale)
For more dedicated coverage, check out our Tour de France hub [insert internal link].
Contributing Writer
Since getting hooked on pro cycling while watching Lance Armstrong win the 1993 U.S. Pro Championship in Philadelphia, longtime Bicycling contributor Whit Yost has raced on Belgian cobbles, helped build a European pro team, and piloted that team from Malaysia to Mont Ventoux as an assistant director sportif. These days, he lives with his wife and son in Pennsylvania, spending his days serving as an assistant middle school principal and his nights playing Dungeons & Dragons.
Test Editor, Bicycling
Bobby is part of the Bicycling Test Team and brings with him over a decade of professional racing experience, including 3 Olympic Team berths. Prior to joining Bicycling, he raced professionally on the road and track for over ten years and dabbled in cyclo-cross and cross-country mountain bike racing as a junior. His resume includes a bronze medal at the 2015 Track Cycling World Championships, three trips to the Olympic Games, Pan American titles, and dozens of National titles. In his spare time between testing bikes and continuing to race at a regional level, he can be found enjoying the quieter side of life and cheap beer on the farm he shares with his wife and their 2 dogs, 3 cats, and 14 chickens.
